SPRING (daffodils, yes, but lots of wind....)

A few new necklaces with a sense of spring, including:

Necklace #57, floral designs in vintage celluloid and bakelite as well as old black glass buttons with botanically-themed designs, on cotton/linen bias tape.

and

 

Necklace #59, with buttons covered in vintage Japanese kimono silk on woven Japanese bias tape:  zinnias and camellias deconstructed, from entirely red, scale-like patterning to just one little tease of red.

These and their fellow necklaces are on my web album at https://picasaweb.google.com/105148425797657603947/ButtonNecklaceSelectionsMostlyCurrentlyAvailable#

Valentine's Felicitiations! Also new in button necklaces.....

Here are a couple of necklaces, one with vintage Japanese fabric covering the buttons, one with vintage plastic buttons.

 

The large buttons on Necklace #55 are covered with Japanese yukata cotton, the small ones with vintage kimono silk.  The necklace is on Japanese chirimen polyester bias tape.

 

 Necklace #54

Vintage plastic buttons on Japanese woven cotton bias tape - blue, blue blue!

Check https://picasaweb.google.com/105148425797657603947/ButtonNecklaceSelectionsMostlyCurrentlyAvailable for the next round in coming weeks!

And Returning to Buttons Covered in Artisanal Fabrics....

Here are two necklaces covered in fabric dyed by Miriam Sklar of mimishibori.  I am lucky enough to have some of her remnants, including samples from early in her career.  To see her full range of garments and read her interesting commentary on shibori, see her website at www.mimishibori.com.

 

Necklace #50. This shibori-dyed fabric is flannel!  It is pleasingly tactile.

And this fabric on Necklace #53 is cotton.  The interesting designs are made by applying a potato-starch resist to the cloth and then pouring pigment into the cracks in the resist medium.

Both necklaces are on bamboo fiber bias tape.

Necklaces for family this holiday season (Happy New Year!)

Happy 2013, and hearty thanks to everyone who came to the Salon des Artistes back on December 2nd!  All nine of us vendors had a wonderful time.  I've now moved all the sold necklace snapshots to my album of necklaces no longer available, https://picasaweb.google.com/105148425797657603947/ButtonNecklacesExamplesNoLongerAvailableForSale . This leaves only ten necklaces currently in stock, and I must get busy.  However, I had a fine time making necklaces for family members this holiday season:

One for my daughter, the leopard-print princess, using red leopard-print polyester and some vintage covered buttons on woven Japanese cotton bias tape.

One for my sister-in-law, who has a special relationship with turtles.  Ceramic turtle buttons (which, I think, she originally gave me), and wooden buttons with foliage, on Japanese shibori-dyed cotton bias tape.

 One for my aunt, who, even when wearing peacock-feather earrings and a purple gown, maintains a flower-like china-doll quality.  The center button is a long-cherished old celluloid one, the others are vintage plastics.  The base is a flower-printed Japanese chirimen polyester bias tape.

 And this one is for my dear friend who has lately been sporting a very sophisticated black linen tunic.  The center button is celluloid with rhinestones, the white glass ones are from the 1950s and she herself brought them to me from London this year, and the accent buttons are metal and glass.  Base is cotton/linen bias tape.

Almost Time for the Salon des Artistes!

Come one, come all to the Salon des Artistes on Sunday Dec. 2, from 9-4, at 616 Spruce NE (in lovely Spruce Park west of the University of New Mexico campus) here in Albuquerque.  There will be eight artists selling, and I will have a selection of necklaces plus the two remaining dolls in my stable (maybe more dolls in 2013 - who knows).

Necklace #46, a mix of vintage and modern plastics on woven cotton Japanese bias tape.

See them all in the album https://picasaweb.google.com/105148425797657603947/ButtonNecklaceSelectionsMostlyCurrentlyAvailable#5810395186940292338

The Joy of Using Artist-Dyed Fabrics.

The shiny watercolor effect of those dyed mother of pearl buttons led me to another watercolor-like look, beautiful hand-dyed fabrics by Sandra Holzman of Sandrasilk,  http://sandrasilk.com..  
Do check her website and learn about her marbling, printing, etc. on fine fabrics and see her gallery of wearable art.  I am lucky enough to have a few of her remnants!

Here on Necklace #43 the covered buttons are accented with dyed mother of pearl buttons, on Japanese chirimen polyester bias tape.  The dominant fabric on the buttons is a double-weave of linen and silk; the two layers float on top of each other as separate fabrics that join as one, interwoven, in various spots.  For this necklace, I used the fabric linen-side-up, but the silk side is pretty exciting, too (another necklace later!).

And here is another using Sandra's fabric:

In this one, Necklace #44, the silk-covered buttons are accented with little vintage glass buttons, on woven cotton Japanese bias tape.

More Fun Mixing Old and New Stash, and a Return to Covered Buttons.

Little dyed mother of pearl sweater buttons become like little jewels when put in a new context, especially the ones that have lived a little.  Necklace #42, on Japanese cotton shibori-dyed bias tape.

And time again to play with buttons covered in vintage Japanese silk.  Necklace #41, on chirimen polyester bias tape.